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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wave · tear · court · wind · craft · straw · club · field

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. craft — a skill
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. wind — moving air
  8. tear — to rip
  9. club — for golf
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. court — of law
  12. club — for dancing
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. club — a group
  15. field — for sport
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. field — a subject
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. court — of a king
  20. court — for sport
  21. tear — from crying
  22. craft — boats
  23. field — farmland
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com